1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to liquid containers, and more particularly to rigid bottles including a dispensing valve for dispensing liquid contents from a bottle.
2. Brief Description of the Related Art
Liquid vessels have been used in the past to store and dispense their liquid contents using a variety of mechanisms. For example, it is known to use a flexible polymer bag equipped with a valve, housed within a paperboard box with the valve extended through the box wall, to store and dispense liquids, e.g., wine. These prior devices typically allow access via the valve to the liquid contents of the bag while the "bag-in-box" is located on a shelf. Other prior devices for storing and dispensing liquids include polymer bottles mounted on a stand, such as a water cooler, and glass and polymer bottles which do not include a valve which controls the flow of liquid from the bottle.
These prior devices suffer from numerous deficiencies. Since the bag-in-box unit requires that the bag collapse in order to dispense its liquid contents, the bag must be formed of a flexible material, which is typically a polymer material. To protect the bag, it must be housed in a cardboard box. These polymer materials from which the bags are made can effect the taste of the liquid contents to an end user, and may not be entirely impermeable to air. Thus, liquids stored in and dispensed from bag-in-box type devices must be used relatively quickly, before their palate is affected by the aforementioned influences. Furthermore, because the bags themselves are relatively flaccid, they cannot support themselves on a shelf, and are therefore required to be housed in a box.
Small glass or polymer bottles are relatively easy for a consumer to use, but large, jug-type bottles are heavy. When placed in the refrigerator, the jug must be lifted out of the refrigerator to pour a small quantity for drinking. The jug must then be returned to the refrigerator shelf. The awkward handling of the heavy jug by the consumer may discourage a consumer from buying the liquid product in this economical size container.